SPOKANE, Wash. – The Gonzaga volleyball team travels to Reno, Nev., this week for its final nonconference tournament of the season. The Zags are set to face Cal Baptist, Nevada and Southern Utah over the two-day tournament, hosted by the University of Nevada-Reno.
 
MATCH ONE
Gonzaga (6-3) vs. Cal Baptist (3-6)
Sept. 20 | 10 a.m. | Reno, Nev. | Virginia Street Gym
Watch Live | Live Stats
 
MATCH TWO
Gonzaga (6-3) at Nevada (7-2)
Sept. 20 | 7 p.m. | Reno, Nev. | Virginia Street Gym
Watch Live | Live Stats
 
MATCH THREE
Gonzaga (6-3) vs. Southern Utah (6-3)
Sept. 21 | 11 a.m. | Reno, Nev. | Virginia Street Gym
Watch Live | Live Stats
 
SERIES REVIEW
vs. Cal Baptist
This is the first meeting between the two programs.
 
vs. Nevada
OVERALL: 4-5 | AWAY: 0-2 | HOME: 3-1 | NEUTRAL: 1-2
The Bulldogs are currently on a one-match win streak against the Wolfpack as the Zags won the last meeting 3-0 in Spokane, Wash., on Sept. 2, 2017 as part of the Gonzaga Invitational. The first match between the two programs was on Oct. 2, 1988, a match which the Zags won in five sets. That sparked a three-match win streak to start the series, but a 3-0 loss to Nevada during the 1999 season led to a five-match losing streak from 1999-2016. The Zags broke that streak with a sweep in 2017.
 
vs. Southern Utah
OVERALL: 2-0 | NEUTRAL: 2-0
This weekend will be the second time in program history the Zags have faced SUU in Reno, Nev. The Bulldogs defeated the Thunderbirds in five sets during their last trip to Reno in 2016. GU opened the series with a 3-0 sweep over SUU at the Grand Canyon Invite in Phoenix in 2015.
 
SCOUTING THE LANCERS:
- Cal Baptist returns 11 of 13 letter winners from last season's squad that finished 21-11 overall with a 9-7 record in the WAC and a trip to the National Invitational Volleyball Championship. Two Lancers were name Preaseason All-WAC: Tesa Oaks and Natalie Zimmerer.
- This season, CBU was picked to finish fourth in the WAC.
- Cal Baptist carries a 3-6 record so far this season with wins against Fairfield, Jackson State and Southeast Louisiana.
- As a team, the Lancers average 12.1 kills per set hitting .198 to go along with 10.9 assists, 1.39 service aces and 14.3 digs per set.
- Four players average at least two kills per set, led by Sydney Marks with 2.79. Marks also leads CBU hitting .244 (among players with at least 100 attempts). Nicole Abreu averages a team-high 4.06 digs per set while Zimmerer adds 6.70 assists per set.
- CBU opened the 2019 season with a four-match losing streak, but they Lancers have won three of their last five matches.
 
ROSTER BREAKDOWN ON NEVADA:
- The Wolfpack were picked to finish last in the Mountain West this season after finishing the 2018 campaign 8-21 with a 1-17 mark in conference play.
- Nevada returns junior outside hitter Kayla Afoa who led the Wolfpack in kills, points and service aces a season ago, leading to a Mountain West Honorable Mention nod.
- Afoa continues to lead the Pack this season, averaging a team-high 3.64 kills per set, over a kill more per set than the next closest player. She also leads Nevada in aces (0.36 per set).
- Dalyn Burns leads the squad in assists with 11.03 per set (leads the Mountain West; and ranks 24th nationally) while Ryan Blackwood adds a team-high 4.27 digs per set.
- After splitting their first four matches with two wins and two losses, the Wolfpack is on a five-match win streak with wins against Purdue Fort Wayne, San Francisco, Portland State, Cal State Northridge and Morgan State. They carry a 3-1 record in three-set matches, 0-1 record in five-set matches and a perfect 4-0 mark in four-set matches.
 
SCOUTING SOUTHERN UTAH:
- The Thunderbirds are coming off a 6-24 season with a 5-13 mark in Big Sky play. This season, SUU was picked to finish 10th out of 11 teams in the Big Sky.
- This season, SUU has already matched its win total from 2018 as it carries a 6-3 record through the first nine matches. The T-Birds opened the season with a five-match win streak; since Sept. 6 they have gone 1-3.
- As a squad, SUU averages 12.61 kills per set hitting .253; both stats rank second in the Big Sky Conference.
- Shannon Webb leads the attack with 4.03 kills per set. That mark also leads the Big Sky and ranks 66th nationally. Stacey Hone adds 3.26 kills per set hitting .323.
- The Thunderbirds have used two setters in their rotation. Corrin Peterson leads the squad in assists per set with 9.81 while Alexis Averett is close behind at 8.42 assists per set.
- Miahna Waters adds a team-high 3.42 digs per set while Mckenzie Dowell adds a team-high 1.00 blocks per set.
 
NATIONAL LEADER IN SERVICE ACES
- Following the Redhawk Invitational, Gonzaga averages 2.86 service aces per set to lead the nation. The Zags have finished with double-figure aces in three matches this season with at least six aces in every match this season.
- In addition to the Bulldogs leading the nation, both Kennedy Croft and Sarah Penner rank in the top 25 nationally for aces per set. Croft leads the team at No. 19 with 0.62 while Penner ranks 25th with 0.60 aces per set.
 
HEADING HOME
Reshirt junior Katelyn Oppio is heading back to her home state for the second time in her career. The Sparks, Nev., native grew up just minutes from the Nevada campus. This weekend marks the third time in her career that she's faced the Wolfpack; the first time was in 2016 when the Bulldogs lost to Nevada in five at the Nevada Wolfpack Tournament while the second was in 2017 when the Bulldogs swept Nevada as part of the Gonzaga Invitational.